Example report — sample data

Sat, Sep 12 · trip window 5:30am – 3:00pmSaved run
GO SMALL — fish inside 20 miles
Inside 20 miles it's a good morning. Past that, a short 7-second chop stacks on top of light swell and the ride home gets wet. Nothing out there today is worth the beating.
Seas at your spot
3.8 ft
Wind
12 kt SSE
Best bite
First light
Ride home
Sloppy after 2pm
Panama City Beach → 38 nm SSW · station 42012

The ride out

Height alone doesn't tell you the ride. How far apart the waves are matters just as much — a 3 ft chop and a 3 ft swell are different days.

LegSeasPeriodDirectionWhat it feels like
At the pass1.0 ft4 secSSECalm, protected water. No issue leaving the dock.
10 miles1.8 ft5 secSSELight chop, easy ride. Run it at normal cruise.
20 miles2.6 ft6 secSLong swell, comfortable. This is the good water.
30 miles3.4 ft7 secSGetting sloppy by noon. Ease off the throttle.
Your spot · 38 nm3.8 ft7 secSSWFishable through the morning, then it turns mixed.

A 7-second period is the dividing line here. Below that it's short and stacked; above it, the swell rolls under you.

Wind through the day

WindowWindRead
Morning · 6–9 am8 kt ELight and offshore. Best window of the day — go now.
Midday · 10 am–1 pm12 kt SSEBreeze builds and swings southeast. Still fishable, drifting faster.
Afternoon · 2–6 pm18 kt SSE, gusting 24Sloppy ride home into it. Be heading in before 2pm.

A southeast swing in the afternoon is the pattern that catches people out on this run — flat going out, wet coming home.

Tides & light

Low
06:12 0.4 ft
Slack at the pass around first light
High
13:47 1.6 ft
Strongest push late morning
Low
20:05 0.9 ft
After you're back at the dock
Sun
07:12 / 19:24
First light 06:44, last light 19:52
Feeding windowStrengthRead
05:40 – 07:40BestLines up with first light and the end of the falling tide. This is the window.
11:50 – 12:50FairMidday, weak. Worth a pass if you're already out there.
18:10 – 20:10BestAfter your weather window closes. Not worth staying out for today.

A modest tide day — the current through the pass is driven more by wind than by volume.

Water temp

Surface now
78.4 °F
Last 72 hours
−0.6 °F
Temperature break
None nearby

Warm and cooling slowly — right where you want it for pelagics. With no temperature break in range, the fish are on structure, not on a temperature edge. Fish the wrecks and the ledge.